Heat exchanger apparatus and air conditioner units incorporating such apparatus



N. LAING Jan. 30, 1968 HEAT EXCHANGER APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONE UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 17, 1966 INVENTOR OLAU s LAIN? 2 ATTORNEYS v N. LAING 3,366,169 HEAT EXCHANGER APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONER Jan. 30, 1968 UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 17, 1966 9 H w I 0 1 G 6 5 d 4 0 m H a ill.. Ar 2 OLAU INVENTQR N 5 LA] G BY 22w), flow- 2, I

ATTORNEYS Jan. 30, 1968 N LAING ,366,169

HEAT EXCHANGER APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONER UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS Filed Aug. 17, 1966 8 Sheets-Sheet 3 EI-A 6 753 INVENTOR NlK LAUS LAING aYj W M /Q I .1070 X 4410014 ATTORNEYS Jan. 30, 1968 UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 17, 1966 Qmk INVENTOR NI LAING BY WW1. /r X ATTOR EYS LAUS Jan. 30, '1968 N. LAING 3,366,169

HEAT'EXCHANGER APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONER UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS Filed Aug. 17, 1966 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 72 /122 125 121 I H fiz 1 778a L 112 01s, 778b 77'0 740 INVENTOR BY NIKOLAIJS LAIQ? iwflzm, J70 X ATTORNEYS Jan. 30, 1968 N. LAING 3,366,169 HEAT EXCHANGER APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONER UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS Filed Aug. 17, 1966 8 Sheets-Sheet 7 INVENTOR NI OLAUS LAING BY M ATTORNEYS Jan. 30, 1968 N LAING 3,366,169

HEAT EXCHANGEJR APPARATUS AND AIR CONDITIONER UNITS INCORPORATING SUCH APPARATUS Filed Aug. 17, 1966 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 FIG. 14

206 nuunnwjml:lsmimlmglllililli i INVENTOR Ni lous Loing BY MCI/M 74'mrl,

ATTORNEYS it may be built into or attached to a wall of a room to United States Patent 0 This invention relates to heat exchanger apparatus, and more particularly but not exclusively to room air conditioner units. The application is a continuation-in-part of my copening application Ser. No. 479,375 filed Aug. 13, 1965, which itself is a continuation-in-part of my earlier application Ser. No. 360,053 filed Apr. 15, 1964, and noW Patent No. 3,200,609 granted Aug. 17, 1965, which in turn is a continuation-in-part of my still earlier application Ser. No. 132,757 filed Aug. 21, 1961.

The invention of my prior applications aforesaid, in one broad aspect, is based on the concept of inducing the air flow through the heat exchanger block by means of a cross-flow blower disposed opposite thereto having its rotor parallel to one side edge of the block, the blower being such as to turn the air flow through an angle between inlet and outlet areas disposed both on the same side of the apparatus. The air may thus be made to flow through the heat exchanger over substantially the whole area thereof; flow between inlet and outlet may be made to take place at least approximately in planes perpendicular to the rotor axis, the deflection of flow in such planes occurring at least to a large extent within the rotor and without the energy loses associated with ducting. It will be appreciated therefore that this apparatus can be made to operate very efiiciently. At the same time, it may be made very compact: in its simplest form the apparatusvof my prior application comprises a pair of end walls and a rear wall interconnecting them to form an air circulation space containing the blower and heat exchanger.

A cross-flow blower as above mentioned comprises a bladed cylindrical rotor and guide means cooperating with 45 the rotor on rotation thereof to induce a flow of air from a suction or entry side of the rotor through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to a pressure or discharge side of the rotor. However, not all cross-fiow 5O blowers will necessarily produce in the rotor the change of flow direction which the invention (as so far disclosed) requires. For my above-mentioned prior applications and also for the present invention it is strongly preferred to adopt a special form of cross-flow blower wherein the rotor and guide means cooperate to set up a vortex of Rankine type having a core parallel to but eccentric of the rotor axis: the vortex field guides the flow in the desired curved path. In this form of cross-flow blower the guide means is wholly external of the rotor, and the rotor 60 interior is clear of interior guides, and preferably without obstruction of any kind.

Heat exchanger apparatus according to the prior applications can be used for various purposes; for example referred to in the penultimate paragraph, the heat exchanger block of one forming the condenser and that of the other evaporator of a refrigeration system.

An object of the invention is to extend the utility of the heat exchanger apparatus and air conditioner units of the prior applications.

In one aspect the invention provides alternative independently operable first and second heat exchange means. Thus in application to a room heater, one such means can be a finned tube or similar heat exchanger block incorporated in a central heating system and the other an electric heater element; in winter the central heating system will circulate hot finid through the heat exchanger block, while on cool evenings, say, in spring or fall when the central heating is not operating the electric heater element can be used. Both heat exchange means can be in the air circuit in series, or means can be provided to switch the air flow through one or other means, so that the air only encounters the resistance of the heat exchange means which is operative at a particular time.

In application to a room air conditioner unit, the invention provides that the unit can be used for cooling the room in summer, through a heat exchanger block forming an evaporator, and for heating in winter through an electric heater element in the same air flow.

In a further aspect, the invention provides heat exchanger apparatus having means to define an opening for flow of air between the air circulation space and the exterior otherwise than through the inlet and outlet areas. This, in a room heater, or air conditioner unit, enables a proportion of the room air to be discharged or a proportion of fresh air to be introduced. The opening can be in the rear wall of the air circulation space, or just upstream of the rotor means if introduction of fresh air is required.

In a still further aspect, the invention provides apparatus having means for introduction of exterior or fresh air through the inlet of one heat exchanger apparatus and thence into the inlet of a second heat exchanger apparatus functioning as a room heater or air conditioning unit whereby the ratio between fresh and recirculated air in a room may be changed.

The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying somewhat diagrammatic drawings wherein certain embodiments of the invention are illustrated, by way of example only. In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a vertical transverse section through a first form of room air conditioner uni-t taken on the line I-I of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the unit taken on the line 11-11 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical transverse section through the unit, taken on the line IIIIII of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical longitudinal section of the unit taken on the line IV--IV of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a further vertical longitudinal sectional view of the unit taken on the line VV of FIGURE 6, wherein a blower rotor and a fairing wall portion are partially cut away to show a duct behind them;

FIGURE 6 is a further vertical transverse section of the unit taken on the line VIVI of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a longitudinal section of the driving motor for the blowers of the unit showing the mounting of the motor and a portion of one blower rotor together with certain other parts which it drives;

FIGURE 8 is a longitudinal section, partly broken away, of the other blower rotor and the means whereby the driven end thereof is rotatably mounted;

FIGURE 9 is a section similar to that of FIGURE 8 but showing how the non-driven end of the rotor is mounted;

FIGURE 10 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 showing a second form of room air conditioner unit;

FIGURES 11 and 12 are two sectional views of a heat 3 exchanger block forming part of the air conditioner unit of FIGURE 10, the section planes for the two figures being shown respectively at XI-XI and XII-XII in FIGURES l2 and 11;

FIGURE 13 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 but showing a third form of air conditioner unit; and

FIGURE 14 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 but showing a fourth form of air conditioner unit.

Referring first to FIGURES l and 2 the room air conditioner unit there shown has the form of a block 1 having a pair of opposite sides 2, 3 which on installation of the unit are directed respectively towards the room and towards the exterior. A rectangular casing 4 provides horizontal top and bottom walls 5, 6 vertical end walls 7, 8 and a vertical partition wall 9 parallel and close to the end wall '7 which divides the block 1 into a smaller and a larger compartment which compartments are designated respectively 10, 11. Rectangular heat exchanger blocks 12, 13a, 1311 are disposed in the larger compartment 11 at either side of the block: both heat exchanger blocks 12, 13a, 13b extend over the whole distance between the vertical walls 8, 9. The heat exchanger block 12 is slightly inclined upwardly and inwardly; the heat exchanger block 13a is vertical and extends over half the height of the compartment 11. The block 13b is of double thickness and extends downwardly and inwardly over the lower half of the height of the compartment 11. An intermediate or partition wall 14 extends generally obliquely through the larger compartment 11 from the lower inside edge 120 of the heat exchanger block 12 to the upper inside edge 130 of the heat exchanger block 13. The wall is reverse-S shaped and provides curved wall portions 15, 16 fairing into the upper and lower casing wall 5, 6 respectively. The partition wall 14 and a portion of the lower wall 6 define with an aperturcd vertical outer wall 200 of the casing and an adjacent louvered area 201 of the top wall an air circulation space 17. The partition wall 14 and a portion of the upper wall 5 define with the heat exchanger block 13a and a vertical outer wall 202 extending from the bottom of the block to the lower casing wall 6 another air circulation space 18 separate from the first.

Within each air circulation space 17, 18 at the wider part thereof is disposed a cross-flow blower designated generally 19, 20, respectively, and comprising a bladed cylindrical rotor 21, 22 extending adjacent and parallel to the horizontal edge 12c, 13c of the respective heat exchanger block 12, 13a and guide means cooperating with the rotor but well spaced therefrom. Each blower rotor 21, 22 is substantially equal in length to the respective edge 12c, 130. In each blower 19, 20 the guide means comprises a guide wall 23, 24 each extending inwardly towards the respective rotor 21, 22 from about half-way in the height of the compartment 11 and terminating in a portion 25, 26 return-bent toward the heat exchanger and defining with the rotor 21, 22 a gap: in the construction illustrated this converges slightly with the rotor in the direction of rotation thereof shown by the arrow 27, 28 but the gap may instead be parallel. The guide means further includes the adjacent wall portion 15, 16 on the side of the rotor 21, 22 opposite the respective returnbent guide wall portion 25, 26. The rotors 21, 22 are entirely without interior obstruction in the construction illustrated, though a shaft of small diameter can be used at the cost of some loss of efficiency. The rotors 21, 22 are driven in the direction of the arrows 27, 28 by means of a motor 29 located in the smaller compartment the motor drives the rotor 22 direct and the rotor 21 by means of a belt 29a, as will be further described below. In operation, the rotors 21, 22 cooperate with their respective guide means to set up a vortex having a core region, indicated at V, which interpenetrates the path of the rotating blades of the rotor adjacent the guide wall portions 25, 26. Air is induced to pass from a suction or entry region S through the path of the rotating blades of the rotor to the interior thereof and thence again through the path of the rotor blades to a pressure or discharge region P: by reason of the vortex flows take place along flow lines, indicated at F which are strongly curved about the vortex core region V to the extent that, in passing through the rotor, the major part of the flow undergoes a change in direction well in excess of At the room side of the unit air is drawn through the apertured outer wall 200 over its whole area and through a filter 36 held against the interior of the wall. A dividing wall 203 extends inwardly from the top edge of the wall 200 down to the middle of the heat exchangers block 12 opposite the upper end of the guide wall 23: the walls 203 and 23 lead the air flow through the lower part of the heat exchanger block to the entry are of the rotor 21. The heat exchanger block 12 terminates a little below the top Wall 5; a substantially vertical wall 204 joins the partition wall 14 to the top of the block 12 and extends from thence to the top wall 5, defining with the dividing wall 203 an outlet duct 205. Within this duct 205 just below the louvred area 201 of the top wall 5 three electric heater elements 206 extend lengthwise of the compartment 11. Air leaving the rotor 21 passes between the partition wall 14 and upper surface of the guide wall 23, which diverge and provide a diffuser. This air then passes through the upper part of the heat exchanger block 12 into the outlet duct 205, past the heater elements 205 and out of the louvred area 201 of the top wall 5.

On the condenser side, the air passes through the condenser heat exchanger block 13a, through the rotor in the manner described, through the diffuser formed between the lower surface of the guide wall 24 and the partition wall 14, and thence through the heat exchanger block 13]; to an outlet region 207 defined between the block, the wall 202 and an adjacent portion of the lower casing wall 6. The lower part of the wall 202 is louvred, as shown at 208, over an area extending the length of the compartment 11, and provides an outlet.

On the room side, it will be seen that air is ejected upwardly with a certain velocity, due to the restricted width of the outlet area 201. The air on the condenser side is ejected in a horizontal jet from the outlet area 208, which is also of restricted width. Thus in both cases the jet leaving the unit will be carried away therefrom and will not immediately be sucked back into it.

Since each rotor 21, 22 is equal in length to one side edge of the respective heat exchanger blocks 12, 13a, 131) the air flows through the blocks and through the associated air circulation spaces take place substantially along planes which are perpendicular to the rotor axes and to the plane of the heat exchanger block, and the change in flow direction occurs mainly in the rotor, due, as explained, to the vortex.

For each side of the unit the inlet and outlet areas are on the same side of the intermediate or partition wall 14.

A motor-driven compressor 45 within the smaller compartment 10 of the block is connected with the heat exchanger blocks 12, 13a, 13b to form a refrigeration apparatus wherein the block 12 is an evaporator and the blocks 13a, 13b a condenser. Thus on the room side of the unit, room air is passed through the filter 36, cooled in passage twice through the block 12 and returned to the room. Rejected heat is dissipated to the exterior atmosphere by the blocks 13a and 13b.

It is emphasized that the apparatus comprising the heat exchanger block 12 or the blocks 13a, 13b, the respective cross flow blower 19 or 20 and associated end and rear walling (comprising parts of walls 8, 9 and walls 14 and either 6 or 5) can find many useful applications apart from the air conditioner unit herein described. Advantages of this heat-exchanger block/crossfiow blower combination are explained in detail in my earlier applications above referred to, as also those of the air conditioner unit.

As will be seen from FIGURE 1, the room air conditioner unit above described can readily be installed in a rectangular aperture in a wall W with only a shallow projection on the room side.

The room air conditioner unit described can of course be installed in other places besides in a wall: thus it may be installed in a window, where its moderate depth is also an advantage.

In normal operation of the unit as an air conditioner, the electric heater elements 206 are unenergized. However, to operate the unit as a heater, the compressor 45 is switched off and the heater elements are energized so that the air emerging through the louvred outlet area 201 is warm.

The lower portion of the intermediate or partition wall 14, which portion is designated 209, is pivoted to the bottom casing wall '6 at the hinge 210 so as to be movable from the position shown in'full lines to that shown chassis dotted where it defines with the fixed upper part of the wall an opening 211 for passage of air between the two air circulation spaces 17, 18. Air will tend to flow from the space 18 to the space 17, thereby introducing air from the outside into the room: this is because the pressure in thespace I8 is higher than that in space 17, owing to the double thickness of the block 13b and the higher speed of the rotor 22, as will be described. There is of course a certain drop in efficiency due to the heating of the incoming fresh air: however, the greater part of the heat is rejected in the block 1312.

It has been explained with reference to FIGURES 1 and 2 that the blower rotors 2 1, 22 are driven by a motor 29, the rotor 21 directly and the rotor 22 by a belt 29a: the arrangement of this belt is shown in FIGURE 3. The belt 29a is trained over a driving pulley 60 which forms a part of one end member of the rotor 21 and over a driven pulley 61 which forms a part of the corresponding end member of the rotor 21. The belt 29a is driven in the direction of the arrows 29b and tensioned by means of an idler pulley e2 rotatably mounted upon a lever 63 pivotally supported at 64 and acted upon by a spring 65. It will be seen that the driven pulley 61 is of smaller diameter than the driving pulley 60, so that the rotor 21 on the room side of the unit rotates at a lower speed than the rotor 22. As will be appreciated any noise produced by the rotor 21 is transmitted directly to the room, so that this rotor should rotate at the lowest speed consistent with the duty it has to perform. Noise from the rotor 22 is rejected to the exterior and cannot enter the room by rea son of the partition wall 14, so that the rotor 22 can be run at any desired speed. Since the temperature differential at the condenser heat exchanger blocks 13a, 13b will generally be less than that at the evaporator block 12, a greater speed for the rotor 22 is desirable.

One of the problems encountered with room air conditioner units is the disposal of the water which condenses on the evaporator. In the units herein shown this problem is solved by providing a sump 66 (FIGURE 3) for this water in the bottom of the smaller compartment It? of the block and locating the idler pulley 62 so that the belt 29a passes through the sump, on its way up to the driven pulley 61. The belt 29a, which is preferably of round cross-section and of fibrous material, picks up water from the sump 66 and carries it to the driven pulley 61 where it is flung off by centrifugal force against a splash-guard 67 placed around the pulley and led by the splash-guard into a duct 68 (FIGURE. 4) extending with a gentle downward slope through the suction region 5 of the rotor 22. The duct 68 is pierced at intervals with holes 69 through which the water drops: this water falls upon the blades of the blower rotor 22 and is broken into tiny droplets which are then carried off in the warm air stream passing from the blower to the evaporator heat exchanger block 1312. Some of the droplets collect on the block and improve the heat dissipation therefrom by their evaporation. Excess water collected on the block returns to the sump 66.

FIGURE 7 shows the mounting of the motor 29 and of the rotor 21 directly driven thereby. The motor 29, which is of the A.C. induction type, comprises a pair of end members 7t 71 in the form of inwardly facing cups with outwardly extending flanges 72, 73. The end members 70, 71 provide shoulders 74, 75 which receive and locate the stack 76 of laminations forming the poles of the motor. Bolts 77 interconnect the flanges 72, 73 of the end members 70, 7'1 and clamp these members together about the lamination stack 76. The motor shaft 7 8, which carries the motor armature 79, is ro-tatably supported from the end members 70, 7 1 through self-aligning bearing bushes 80, $1 of sintered material and spherical exterior formation. The bushes 8t), 81 are urged into axially disposed seating recesses 82, 83 of complementary shape in the end members 70, 71 by means of annularly corrugated retainer elements 84, 85 of resilient sheet material each having a central portion in contact with the respective bush and an axial flange 86, 87 engaged within the respective end member and located in position by a circlip 83, 89. Each retainer element 84, 85 also holds against the respective end member 70, 71 a wad 90, Q1 of fibrous material saturated with lubricating oil and surrounding jtfhe corresponding bush 80, 81 to form an oil store there- The motor end member 71 has an integral extension in the form of an arm 92 which projects upwards close to the vertical partition wall 9 and is secured thereto by means not shown.

The motor shaft 78 extends through a wide circular aperture 93 in the partition wall 9 and mounts one'end of the rotor 21. The rotor comprises a series of blades 94 arranged in a ring and supported between a pair of end members of which only one, designated 95, is shown in the figure. This end member 95 has the form of a disc located within the aperture 93 in alignment with partition wall 9 and having an integral annular extension within the compartment 10 providing the pulley 60 previously described. The end member 95 has a centrally apertured boss 9 5a receiving a soft rubber bushing 96 into which one end of the motor shaft 78 projects so that the bushing is compressed between the shaft and the boss. A pin 97 extends through a radial bore in the shaft 78 and has its ends seated against soft rubber blocks 98 received in radial recesses $9 in the annular extension forming the pulley. Thus the rotor 21 is supported on the motor shaft 78 in a manner permitting, by reason of the elastic bushing as, minor misalignment bet-ween their respective axes: the shaft drives the rotor through the pin 97 which can also accommodate such misalignment. Thus despite the length of the rotor 21 the bearings therefor will not seize or impose undue braking torque should the alignment thereof become slightly upset through distortion of the casing 4-, e.g., on installation or transport: moreover it is unnecessary to take special precautions to secure alignment on assembly, and a cheaper construction becomes possible.

A sealing ring 1% fixed to the partition wall 9 about the aperture $3 therein closely surrounds the end member $5: this ring is finally secured in position after assembly of the motor 29 and rotor 21.

The end of the motor shaft 78 opposite the rotor 21 supports rigidly in overhung fashion a cylindrical bladed rotor 1M of short axial length. The motor end member 70 is formed integrally with a casing 1&2 enclosing the rotor 101. The rotor 1M and casing 192 therefor will be further described hereafter.

The non-driven end of the rotor 21 (not illustrated in FIGURE 7) is supported in the manner described with reference to FIGURE 9 for the non-driven end of the rotor 21.

The mounting of the rotor 22 is illustrated in FIGURES 7 8 and 9. Like the rotor 21, this rotor 22 comprises a series of blades arranged in a ring and supported between end supports, the blades and end supports being here designated 111), 111 and 112, respectively.

Both the rotor end members 111, 112 are basically discs each with an inwardly directed boss 113 carrying an outwardly projecting stub shaft 115. Each stub shaft 115 is received in a bearing bush 111i formed of sintered material. The bearing bushes 116 are flexibly mounted within fixed bearing support members 117, 118 which are of shallow cup-like formation, each having a flat bottom 117a, 118a and a rim 117b, 1181). A series of projections 119 arranged in a ring about the rotor axis extend from each of the bearing support members 117, 118 and surround the outer end of the respective bush 116 in slightly spaced relation thereto. Each bush 116 is formed with an annular groove midway between its ends which locates an O-ring 12d, and this O-ring is clamped between the projections 119 and a central annular portion 121 of a centrally apertured retainer disc 122 of resilient sheet metal the outer periphery of which is secured to the rim 11712, 11817 of the respective bearing support members 117, 118. By these means the bearing bushes 116 are able to move sli htly to accommodate minor misalignment of the stub shafts 115 or of the bearing support members. Thus, as with the mounting of the rotor 21 there is no need to take special precautions to establish and maintain perfect alignment.

An annular wad 123 of lubricant-soaked fibrous material fills the space between each bearing support member 117, 118 and the associated bearing bush retainer disc 122 to provide a store of lubricant for the bush 116, the lubricant reaching the bush through the spaces between the projections 119. Any lubricant thrown off the eX- treme end of each stub shaft is returned direct to the wad 123: a splash ring 124 is mounted on each stub-shaft 115 between the bush 116 and the boss 113 of the respective rotor end members 111, 112 and oil leaking from the bush in the direction of the rotor is thrown off by the splash ring against a tubular extension 125 of the central portion 121 of the retainer disc 122 which extension surrounds the splash ring and has an inturned lip 126 on the rotor side thereof, the lip and extension guiding the oil back to the wad 123.

The rotor end member 111 carries at its periphery a flange 127 having laterally and radially outwardly directed portions 128, 129 respectively, the latter portion 129 being formed integrally with a ring 129a extending laterally inwardly thereof and providing the pulley 61 previously referred to. The plane containing the belt 29a (see FIGURES 3 and 4) passing over this pulley 61 intersects the bearing bush 116 at about midway between its ends, so that belt tension does not introduce undesirable bending moments in the assembly. The bearing support member 117 has an integral extension in the form of an arm 131) which projects downwardly close to the partition wall 9, and is secured thereto at 131: this arm 130 may form a continuation of the arm 92 by which the motor 29 is supported. By mounting the bearing support member 117 and motor 29 solely on the arms 130, 92 it becomes possible to assemble the belt 29a over the pulleys 6t), 61, or remove it therefrom, without previously dismantling any parts.

The rotor end member 111 is positioned within a circular aperture 132 in the partition wall 9. A ring 133 fixed to the wall 9 about the aperture 132 extends close up to the periphery of the rotor end member 111 and has an outwardly directed annular flange 134 which projects laterally between the ring 129a and the outwardly directed flange portion 123 on the member 111. The flange 134 can be omitted, if desired.

As shown in FIGURE 9, the bottom 118a of the bear- Illg support member 113 projects radially outwardly beyond the rim 11th) previously mentioned and carries an outer rim 136 with a radially extending flange 137 secured to a wall 138 which is close and parallel to the end wall 8 of the casing 4 (see FIGURE 2). The rotor end member 112 has at its periphery a flange 139 which extends laterally outwardly between the rims 118b, 136 of the bearing support member 118. The bearing support member 118 is formed with holes 140 between the rims 1181), 136 over an are. It has been explained that the non-driven end of the rotor 22 is also supported in the manner shown in FIGURE 9. For this rotor, too, holes may be provided similar to the holes 140; such holes are shown in FIGURE 5 where they are designated 141. The purpose of these holes 140, 141 is explained below.

As will be seen from FIGURES 8 and 9, the rotor end members 111, 112 and the support means therefor are designed to present, to air flow through the rotor 22, surfaces which (apart from the bosses 113) are flat and flush with the adjacent surfaces of the walls 9, 138 bounding the circulation space 18 at either end of the rotor; as will be understood, the object of this is to minimize disturbance of the air fiow at the ends of the rotor. However, some disturbance of the air flow at the ends of the rotor 22 may occur despite precautions just mentioned, and it may be desirable to provide auxiliary walls 142, 143 on the pressure side of the rotor which reject flow from immediately adjacent the ends of the rotor: these walls diverge in the direction of flow and merge into the walls 9, 138 at a point downstream.

It will be recalled that the cross-flow blowers 19, 20 operate by the formation of a vortex of Rankine type having a core region which interpenetrates the path of the rotor blades adjacent the guide wall portions 25, 26, as shown in FIGURE 1. Now the core region is a region of low static pressure, so that air will tend to flow into this region from the surroundings through clearance spaces at the ends of the rotor, and thereby impair the vortex and hence the blower efliciency near the ends of the rotor. The air conditioner unit described provides means to counteract this. As already mentioned the blower motor 29 drive-s a cross-flow rotor 101 within a casing 102 (see FIGURES 5, 6 and 9). This casing 102 provides for the rotor 101 guide surfaces which correspond generally to those associated with the rotors 21, 22: thus the casing includes end walls 145, a guide wall 146 corresponding to the guide Walls 23, 24 and having a return-bent portion 147 conveying with the rotor, and a second guide wall 148 opposite the wall 146, the walls 145, 146 and 148 defining a ditfusing outlet region 149 discharging to the side 3 of the block 1 facing the exterior. The rotor 101 and casing 102 cooperate to form a cross-flow blower designated generally 151 and functioning in the same manner as the blowers 19, 20; no further description of this blower will accordingly be required. Air reaches the rotor 101 from the compartment 10, which communicates with the narrow space 151 between the end wall 8 and the rotor-bearing support wall 138 by the ducts 152 formed between the partition walling 14, the upper casing wall 5 and wall portion 204. In this way the blower 150 sucks air out through the holes 140, 141 into the space 151 and thence through the duct 152 to the compartment 10, whence the air passes through the blower and discharges to the exterior. In addition a certain amount of air is sucked direct into the compartment 10 through the gaps around the rotor end members 95 and 111. The air passed through the blower serves to cool the compressor 45 and the motor 29. However, since the air is taken largely from the vortex core regions (shown at V in FIGURE 1) near the ends of the rotors 21, 22, where otherwise air would tend to enter and spoil the vortex, the effect is also to strengthen and stabilize these regions and hence improve the performance of the blowers 19, 20 near the ends of the rotors. It will be appreciated that by rendering the flow through the blowers 19, 20 substantially uniform over their length the efiiciency of the heat-exchanger 9 block/blower unit combinations may be correspondingly improved.

Referring now to FIGURE 10, the room air conditioner unit there shown is generally similar to that just described except that provision is made for the air flow on the room side to pass either through the evaporator heat exchanger block (here designated 12') or past the electric heater elements 206, so that in each case the resistance to air flow is not unnecessarily increased by a heat exchange means not then in service. Parts similar to those of FIGURESI to 9 will be designated by the same numerals and will not need further description.

In the FIGURE unit the louvred outlet area 201 on the room side is increased in width and divided longitudinally into two parts, designated 221 and 222, by a vertical partition strip 223 below the louvres. The wall portion 204 of FIGURE 1 is dispensed with, and the heater elements 236 mounted directly under the outlet part 222 between the top curved part of the partition wall 14 and the partition strip 223. The top part 22 1 of the wall 200 (being about one-third of its height) is mperforate and the lower part 225 is louvred; the guide wall 23 extends from the lower edge of the top part 224 down towards the rotor 21. The evaporator heat exchanger block 12' is pivotally mounted (as will be described) at 226 adjacent the return bent position of the guide wall 23 and can move between an operative position shown in full lines in the figure and a retracted position against the guide wall 23, shown dotted. The free end of the block 12' carries a shroud plate 227. In the operative position of the block, this plate 227 extends between the partition wall 14 and the lower edge of the partition strip 223, so as to block the outlet part 222. In this position of the block, air enters the apertured lower part 225 of the casing wall 200, traverses the rotor as previously described, traverses the block over its whole area and obliquely to the plane thereof, and is discharged vertically upwardly through outlet part 221. The heating elements 206 are inoperative with the block in this position. When the block 12' is swung into its inoperative, dotted-line, position, the shroud plate 227 extends between the lower edge of the partition strip 223 and the Wall part 224- so as to block off the outlet part 221. In this position of the block 12 the heater elements may be energized and ilow will take place past them and through the outlet part 222.

The fluid connection and pivotal mounting arrangements of the evaporator heat exchanger block 12' are shown in FIGURES 11 and 12. The block 12' is here shown as a tube 230 bent to run to and from between end frame members one of which is shown at 231. A rigid rod 232 is fixed in the casing 4 of the unit and extends through holes 233 in the end members. The tube 230 terminates adjacent the rod 232 at either end member 231 and is joined by a spiral connecting tube 234 to fixed conduits conventionally connected to the condenser and compressor. When the block 12' pivots on the rod 232, the movement is taken up by deformation of the spiral.

Other parts of the FIGURE 10 unit are as shown in FIGURES 1 to 9; however, the duct 152 is dispensed with Such a duct could be formed by cutting otf the corner between the top wall 5 and the curved wall portion 15, to the left (as seen in FIGURE 10) of the outlet area 222.

FIGURE 13 shows a room air conditioner unit similar to that of FIGURES 10 to 12 except for the manner in which fresh air is introduced into the room side of the unit. Once again similar fans will be denoted by the same reference numerals and will not need further description. The FIGURE 10 unit employs an arrangement for this purpose, which is like that shown in FIGURE 1. In the FIGURE 13 unit, there is instead a duct 240 leading under the lower casing wall 6 to an opening 241 in the suction region S over the length of the rotor; the opening 241 is controlled by a pivoting flap 242. Whe no f h air is wanted the flap 242 is closed. With the flap open, fresh air is sucked through the duct 240 into the fan rotor 21, together with air from the room side 2.

The FIGURE 13 arrangement has the advantage over that of FIGURE 1 that the fresh air is not heated at all before its introduction into the air circulation space 17, and that flow disturbance by the pivoting wall 209 is avoided. However, the FIGURE 13 arrangement tends to increase both the height and thickness of the unit.

FIGURE 14 illustrates a still further embodiment of my invention which has a number of features which could be used with the embodiments illustrated in the previously described figures. Specifically, the arrangement shown in FIGURE 14 includes a vortex forming and stabilizing means 250 for blower 20 which is pivotable about a pivot to vary the position and intensity of the vortex V so as to regulate the air flow over the heat exchanger block 251 which serves as a condenser heat exchanger block. The inclusion of such a means for varying the throughput of the blower 20 assures that sufficient air will flow over the condenser heat exchanger block to provide suflicient removal of heat therefrom under a variety of operating conditions. For example, in an extremely hot climate, more air would have to flow over the heat exchanger block than in a cooler climate. It is well known that when blowers operate under high throughput conditions, that the noise level of the blower is higher than when operated under lower throughput conditions. Thus, when the apparatus is to be used in a comparatively cool climate, the throughput may be reduced, which at the same time will reduce the noise level of the machine. The movable vortex forming and stabilizing means 250 may be manually operated or could be automatically operated by a thermostat.

The FIGURE 14 construction also includes a movable wall 252 which is attached to plates 253-, only one of which is shown, which in turn are adapted to be pivoted about point 254. When wall 252 is in the position shown in FIGURE 14, fresh air from the blower 20 on the condenser side of the apparatus is drawn into the air cir culating space 18 and passed into the inlet of the blower 19 and thence over the evaporator heat exchanger block 12' into the interior of the room. In this position, no air is recirculated from the room through the machine. When the movable wall is moved completely to the left as shown in the dotted position of FIGURE 14, no fresh air enters the room from the exterior thereof and the only air passing through the rotor 19 will be that drawn from the room. When the movable wall 252 is in an intermediate position as shown in the figure, fresh air will be mixed with recirculated air. An advantage of having the fresh air which is to be mixed with recirculated air passing through the suction side of the blower 19 is that one filter F may be utilized to filter both fresh and recirculated air. This construction further allows stale air to be quickly forced from the room which is desirable, for example, in classrooms where fresh air should be circulated in the room between classes.

A further feature of the FIGURE 14 construction is in providing a condensate collecting means 255 which is positioned below the evaporator heat exchanger block 12 to collect condensate as it drips from the block. A condensate duct 256 is provided by which the condensate collected in means 255 may be conveyed so as to flow over a portion of the exterior of the condenser heat exchanger block 13b. In this manner the condensate flowing over the heat exchanger block 13b, will increase the efiiciency of the transfer of heat from the block to the air passing over the block.

A further advantage of the construction shown in all of the embodiments of the invention is that an inlet for the lower on the condenser portion or exterior facing portion of the apparatus is located at the upper part of the apparatus. This results in less dirt being drawn into the machine than if the inlet were positioned at the bottom.

It is to be understood that many details of the embodiments illustrated may be varied without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. For example, the constructions of FIGURES 1 to 14 may be modified to bring them closer to those described in the parent application Ser. No. 360,053. The FIGURE 1 construction could for example have an outlet on the room side which discharged horizontally out into the room, rather than vertically upward. All constructions could be inverted so that air is discharged vertically downward on the room side or the electrical heating elements could be substituted by a conduit carrying a heating fluid. The construction of FIGURE 1 of the parent application could be modified to incorporate the teachings of the present invention: thus electric heating elements might be provided just inside the louvres defining the outlet 31, or the partition wall 14 could be formed with a movable part like the part 269 in FIG- URES 1 and 10. Similarly, the teachings of the present invention might be incorporated in other figures of application Ser. No. 360,053.

I claim:

1. Heat exchanger apparatus comprising walls defining an air circulation space and having an air inlet area and an air outlet area, a cross flow blower located at the bottom of said apparatus and in said air circulation space having cylindrical bladed rotor means and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, independently operable first and second heat exchange means for interposition in the path of said air flow between the inlet and outlet areas wherein said first heat exchanger means has passages therein through which a heat exchange fluid may circulate, and the walls including a rear wall and end walls extending forwardly therefrom, said inlet and outlet areas, said rotor means and said heat exchange means extending substantially over the width of the apparatus between the end walls with said inlet and outlet areas to the same side of the rear wall.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first heat exchange means is in the form of a rectangular heat exchanger block and said second heat exchange means is an electric heater element located downstream of said rotor in the direction of air flow from said inlet to said outlet.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein one of said heat exchange means is movable between an operative position in which it is interposed in said air flow and an inoperative position in which it is by-passed by said air flow.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said heat exchanger block is pivotally movable between an operative position in which it is interposed in said air flow and an inoperative po ition in which it is lay-passed by said air flow.

5. Heat exchanger apparatus comprising walls defining an air circulation space and having an air inlet area and an air outlet area, across flow blower located at the bottom of said apparatus and in said air circulation space having cylindrical bladed rotor means and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, heat exchange means for interposition in the path of said air flow between the inlet and outlet areas, and the walls including a rear wall and end walls extending forwardly therefrom, said inlet and outlet areas, said rotor means and said heat exchange means extending substantially over the width of the apparatus between the end walls with said inlet and outlet areas to the same side of the rear wall, and means to define an opening adjacent said rotor for flow of air between the air circulation space and the exterior thereof otherwise than through said inlet and outlet areas.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the means to define said opening comprises a portion of the rear wall which is pivotable between an open and a closed position.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said rear wall portion forms a guide wall for the rotor on the downstream side thereof.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the means to define said opening includes a movable wall portion between the inlet area and said rotor means.

9. Air conditioner/heater apparatus comprising a refrigeration device having an evaporator in the form of a rectangular heat exchanger block having an inoperative and operative position for circulation therethrough of refrigerant, a casing surrounding the heat exchanger block and having a rear wall and end walls extending forwardly thereof, the casing defining an air circulation space and having inlet and outlet areas to the same side of the rear wall, a cylindrical bladed rotor means extending across the width of said heat exchanger block and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, and an electric heater element in the casing located downstream of said rotor, and means to render effective, alternatively, the heat exchanger block to cool, and said electric element to warm, said air fiow between the inlet and outlet areas.

10. Air conditioner/heater apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the outlet area is divided longitudinally into a first and a second part and the electric heater element lies adjacent said first part, and wherein the heat exchanger block carries a shroud which blocks flow through the first part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its operative position and blocks the second part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its inoperative position.

11. Air conditioner apparatus comprising a generally block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the casing longitudinally into a condenser side and an evaporator side each having an air circulation space and inlet and outlet areas communicating therewith, a cross fiow blower in each air circulation space comprising cylindrical bladed rotor means extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a How of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeraion apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser side and the evaporator heat exchanger being arranged for interposition in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the evaporator side, and means to define an opening in said intermediate wall for flow of air between the air circulation spaces on the condenser and evaporator sides to define a flow passage extending from the delivery side of said blower on said condenser side to the delivery side of said blower on said evaporator side.

12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein said opening defining means comprises a portion of the intermediate wall which is pivotable between an open and a closed position.

13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein said pivotable wall portion in the open position is effective to catch a proportion of the air fiow in the condenser circu- 13 lation space on the downstream side of the rotor and divert it into the evaporator circulation space.

14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the intermediate wall provides a guide wall, forming at least part of said guide means, for the rotor means both on the condenser side and the evaporator side, the intermediate wall extending obliquely through the height of the block so that the air circulation spaces on the two sides are wider in one part than another with the rotor means adjacent the top and bottom of the block in the wider part of the respective air circulation space, and the means to define said opening comprises a portion of said intermediate wall which is pivotable to define said opening intermediate the two rotor means.

15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11 including an electric heater element on the evaporator side and downstream of the rotor on said evaporator side which is effective to heat the air flow in the circulation space thereof when the evaporator heat exchanger block is ineffective.

16. Heat exchanger apparatus comprising walls defining an air circulation space and having an air inlet area and an air outlet area, a cross flow blower in said air circulation space having cylindrical bladed rotor means and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area independently operable first and second heat exchange means for interposition in the path of said air flow between the inlet and outlet areas, and the walls including a rear wall and end walls extending forwardly therefrom, said inlet and outlet areas, said rotor means and said heat exchange means extending substantially over the width of the apparatus between the end walls with said inlet and outlet areas to the same side of the rear wall, said first heat exchange means is in the form of a rectangular heat exchanger block for circulation therein of a heat exchange fluid and said second heat exchange means is an electric heater element, said heat exchanger block being pivotally movable between an operative position in which it is interposed in said air flow and an inoperative position in which it is bypassed by said air flow, said outlet area being divided longitudinally into a first and a second part and the heater element lying adjacent to said first part, and said heat exchanger block carrying a shroud which blocks air fiow through the first part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its operative position and blocks the second part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its inoperative position.

17. Heat exchanger apparatus comprising walls defining an air circulation space and having an air inlet area and an air outlet area, a cross flow blower in said air circulation space having cylindrical bladed rotor means and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a fiow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area independently operable first and second heat exchange means for interposition in the path of said air flow between the inlet and outlet areas, and the walls including a rear wall and end walls extending forwardly therefrom, said inlet and outlet areas, said rotor means and said heat exhange means extending substantially over the width of the apparatus between the end walls with said inlet and outlet areas to the same side of the rear wall, said first heat exchange means is in the form of a rectangular heat exchanger block for circulation therein of a heat exchange fluid, said heat exchanger block being pivotally movable between an operative position in which it is interposed in said air flow and an inoperative position in which it is bypassed by said air flow, said outlet area being divided longitudinally into a first and a second part and the heater element lying adjacent to said first part, and said heat exchanger block carrying a shroud which blocks air flow through the first part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its operative position and blocks the second part of the outlet area when the heat exchanger block is in its inoperative position.

13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein said movable wall portion may move from a fully closed position wherein said opening is closed and air fiows only through said inlet area into said air circulation space to a fully open position wherein said opening is opened and said inlet area is closed and air flows into said air circulation space only through said opening from the exterior of said apparatus, and whereby said movable wall portion in intermediate positions between the fully open and closed positions allows mixing of air flowing into said air circulation space from said opening and said inlet area.

'19. A room air conditioning apparatus comprising a substantially block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the casing into an exteriorly facing condenser portion and a room facing evaporator portion each having an air circulation space and an inlet and outlet area communicating therewith, a cross flow blower in each air circulation space comprising a cylindrical bladed rotor extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating with the rotor on rotation thereof in a predetermined direction to induce a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeration apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending substantially over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser portion and the evaporator heat exchanger block being arranged for interposition in the path of air flow in the circulation space in the evaporator portion, and movable means for varying flow of air from the delivery side of the blower in the condenser portion to the intake side of the blower in the evaporator portion whereby the ratio of air from the exterior of the room may be varied with respect to the air recirculated in the room by the blower in the evaporator portion.

20. Apparatus according to claim 19 wherein the guide means of the blower located in the air circulation space of the condenser portion includes a movable vortex former and stabilizer by which the throughput of the blower in the condenser portion may be varied to assure suificient air flow over the condenser heat exchanger block under all operation conditions at a minimum noise level.

21. Apparatus according to claim 19 including means for disconnecting the compressor from operation whereby when said compressor is not operating, said apparatus may operate as a ventilator to draw fresh air into the room from the exterior thereof.

22. Apparatus according to claim 19 wherein the bottom of the evaporator heat exchanger block is positioned above a portion of the condenser heat exchanger block and having in addition condensate collecting means positioned below said evaporator heat exchanger block and condensate conduit means extending from said collecting means to said condenser heat exchanger block whereby condensate may fiow from said collecting means over the exterior of a portion of said condenser heat exchanger block.

23. Apparatus according to claim 19 wherein the inlet area of the condenser portion is positioned on the side of the apparatus facing the exterior of the room and at the top thereof.

24. A room air conditioning apparatus comprising a substantially block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the casing into an exteriorly facing condenser portion and a room facing evaporator portion each having an air circulation space and an inlet and outlet area communicating therewith, a cross flow blower in each air circulation space comprising a cylindrical bladed rotor extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating with the rotor on rotation thereof in a predetermined direction to induce a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeration apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending substantially over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser portion and the evaporator heat exchanger block being arranged for interposition in the path of air flow in the circulation space in the evaporator portion, and the guide means of the blower located in the air circulation space of the condenser portion including a movable vortex former and stabilizer by which the throughput of the blower in the condenser portion may be varied to assure sufficient air flow over the condenser heat exchanger block under all operating conditions at a minimum noise level.

25. A room air conditioning apparatus comprising a substantially block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the easing into an exteriorly facing condenser portion and a room facing evaporator portion each having an air circulation space and an inlet and outlet area communieating therewith, a cross flow blower in each air circulation space comprisng a cylindrical bladed rotor extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating with the rotor on rotation thereof in a predetermined direction to induce a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeration apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending substantially over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser portion and the evaporator heat exchanger block being arranged for interposition in the path of air How in the circulation space in the evaporator portion, wherein the bottom of the evaporator heat exchanger block is positioned above a portion of the condenser heat exchanger block and having in addition condensate collecting means positioned below said evaporator heat exchanger block and condensate duct means extending from said collecting means to said condenser heat exchanger block whereby condensate may flow from said collecting means over the exterior of a portion of said condenser heat exchanger block.

26. Air conditioner apparatus comprising a generally block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the casing longitudinally into a'condenser side and an evaporator side each having an air circulation space and inlet and outlet areas communicating therewith, a cross flow blower in each air circulation space comprising cylindrical bladed rotor means extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a flow of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeration apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser side and the evaporator heat exchanger being arranged for interposition in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the evaporator side, a movable wall portion defining an opening between the inlet area on the evaporator side and the rotor means thereof, and duct means to lead ambient air from the condenser side to said opening.

27. Air conditioner apparatus comprising a generally block-like casing, an intermediate wall dividing the easing longitudinally into a condenser side and an evaporator side each having an air circulation space and inlet and outlet areas communicating therewith, a cross flow blower in each air circulation space comprising cylindrical bladed rotor means extending longitudinally of the casing and guide means cooperating therewith to induce on rotation of the rotor means in a predetermined direction a How of air from the inlet area through the path of the rotating blades to the interior of the rotor means and thence again through the path of the rotating blades to the outlet area, refrigeration apparatus comprising a condenser and an evaporator each including a rectangular heat exchanger block, said cross flow blower in each said air circulating space extending over the width of a heat exchanger block, the condenser heat exchanger block being disposed in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the condenser side and the evaporator heat exchanger being arranged for inter-position in the path of air flow in the circulation space on the evaporator side; said guide means for the rotor means on the evaporator side including a guide wall extending adjacent said rotor means from the inlet area to merge with the intermediate Wall and a movable portion of said guide wall upstream of the rotor means extending the length thereof being pivotable between an inoperable position and an operable position to form an opening, and duct means for leading ambient air from the condenser side to said opening.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1/1935 Terry 3O 9/1964 Walker 165122 

1. HEAT EXCHANGER APPARATUS COMPRISING WALLS DEFINING AN AIR CIRCULATION SPACE AND HAVING AN AIR INLET AREA AND AN AIR OUTLET AREA, A CROSS FLOW BLOWER LOCATED AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID APPARATUS AND IN SAID AIR CIRCULATION SPACE HAVING CYLINDRICAL BLADED ROTOR MEANS AND GUIDE MEANS COOPERATING THEREWITH TO INDUCE ON ROTATION OF THE ROTOR MEANS IN A PREDETERMINED DIRECTION A FLOW OF AIR FROM THE INLET AREA THROUGH THE PATH OF THE ROTATING BLADES TO THE INTERIOR OF THE ROTOR MEANS AND THENCE AGAIN THROUGH THE PATH OF THE ROTATING BLADES TO THE OUTLET AREA, INDEPENDENTLY OPERABLE FIRST AND SECOND HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS FOR INTERPOSITION IN THE PATH OF SAID AIR FLOW BETWEEN THE INLET AND OUTLET AREAS WHEREIN SAID FIRST HEAT EXCHANGER MEANS HAS PASSAGES THEREIN THROUGH WHICH A HEAT EXCHANGE FLUID MAY CIRCULATE, AND THE WALLS INCLUDING A REAR WALL AND END WALLS EXTENDING FORWARDLY THEREFROM, SAID INLET AND OUTLET AREAS, SAID ROTOR MEANS AND SAID HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY OVER THE WIDTH OF THE APPARATUS BETWEEN THE END WALLS WITH SAID INLET AND OUTLET AREAS TO THE SAME SIDE OF THE REAR WALL. 